City Planning Commission Approves Inwood Rezoning

INWOOD, NY — The city's proposal to rezone a large portion of the Inwood neighborhood scored a win Monday when it was approved by the City Planning Commission during a special meeting, city officials said. The commission voted overwhelmingly in favor of the plan.

The City Planning Commission vote was the first positive result for the city's plan since it was certified for the Uniform Land Use Review Procedure. The City Council will have 50 days to act on the proposed rezoning and has the power to modify the plan proposed by the New York City Economic Development Corporation.

Commissioners praised the city's plan Monday for its ability to spur economic development in the Inwood neighborhood and passed two amendments that would encourage greater amounts of open space on the Harlem River waterfront and relax regulations for ground-floor commercial spaces, City Limits reported.

"Today’s vote marks another major step towards bringing transformative investment to the Inwood community while maintaining its affordability for working families," Economic Development Corporation spokeswoman Stephanie Baez said in a statement.

But one member of the City Planning Commission did not share the same enthusiasm for the plan. Commissioner Michelle De La Uz agreed with the commission's amendments on open space and ground-floor businesses, but voiced her concern about the plan's ability to displace current Inwood residents and small businesses, City Limits reported.

"I remain deeply concerned about the loss of local immigrant businesses and rent-stabilized housing," De La Uz said, as reported by City Limits. "I think it is important to point out that residential tenants may have a right to counsel but they do not have right to their rezoned buildings."

The city's plan was opposed by Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer. Community Board 12 passed a nuanced resolution that supported parts of the city's plan while opposing others and offering suggestions for how the plan could be better improved.

In accordance with the city's Uniform Land Use Review Procedure (ULURP), the Community Board and Borough President recommendations are only advisory. The City Planning Commission and the City Council have the power to modify the city's rezoning plan.

The city Economic Development Corporation began exploring a neighborhood-wide rezoning to Inwood in 2015 and has been pitching its plan for about two years. After being booed out of a community board meeting in 2016, the corporation came back with an updated proposal in the summer of 2017 that featured contextual rezoning for areas west of 10th Avenue and north of Dyckman street that aim to preserve the neighborhood's existing character.

The city estimates that the rezoning proposal will create "the potential" for 1,300 new affordable apartments int he neighborhood and publicly accessible waterfront spaces along the Harlem River.

Despite the city's promises, a group of residents from a number of community groups have criticized the plan as being a handout to developers. The groups formed a coalition, called Uptown United, which vocally opposed the plan throughout the years-long process and presented its own recommendations for rezoning. The coalition claims that the rezoning plan with accelerate gentrification in Inwood, threaten rent-stabilized housing and result in the displacement of longtime tenants and small businesses.

Photo Courtesy NYC Economic Development Corportation